Campaign of the Month:
September 2013

Heroes Unchained

Two of The Unchained become infected by an insidious parasitic Horror while exploring the Temple of Rashomon. A deadly game of cat and mouse ensues, with the rest of The Unchained trying their best not to become Horror marked, while at the same time, trying to contain the outbreak from spreading across Barsaive.

The Unchained have discovered that while in Bartertown, their ship’s Captain has gone missing. Thanks to Dremnin’sScout abilities, they find him located at an old pre-Scourge temple to Rashomon. It is also revealed that each of the Unchained were visited by a Passion. What could this mean?

The Unchained have arrived safe and sound back in Bartertown. A few surprises and visitors are awaiting The Unchained once they disembark from their airship. Red-heads, assassins, and nethermancers…OH MY!!!

Having finished their business in Haven (i.e. – repaid Roinak and friends, dispatched a Horror called The Abomination, Hatched a dragon egg, saved Haven, declared Heroes and got drunk), The Unchained decide it’s time for a little rest, relaxation and training back in Bartertown. All is swell on the Dashing Stag. Nothing but rainbows and sunshine.

fter the Theran’s attacked The Reach, trying to secure Vridich yet again, it is decided that it might be best to send The Unchained away. After some quick training, The Unchained are given a swift airship. Once airborne, the Unchained are ambushed again by Therans on their way to Throal. But this time the Unchained have a surprise of their own waiting for the Therans.

The icy wind howled as it whipped against the cold steel of my helmet while I stared into the whiteness of the peaks from the bow of our airship. To my left was my moot brother Vargas, captain of our vessel. He was a massively built troll, wearing blue crystal plate armor, typical of the sky raiders of the peaks. He also bore a stern look, always serious like his father, Rorik. To my right was a huge wolf ridden by another of my moot brothers, Elgorn. He was smaller than Vargas, wearing furs and finely forged hide for armor. He clutched a long spear with a barbed head named Devastator. A gift from and old ork who was a friend of his grandfather, Tago. The sun was bright and against our backs as we stood on the creaking deck of our air ship as it circled lazily through the sky. I remember the sun reflecting off the spear, and the furs on Elgorn and his mount glittering with the frost that had blown off the mountain. To this day I can still remember the sound of the sails snapping in the wind. We all had our gazes locked onto the mountain ahead.

The ship was named Wind Viper, and in the last few months since my capture, I had learned that she was a fine vessel indeed. She was known to be one of the fastest ships in the sky. I had thought this only a boast at first, but I soon discovered the tales did her justice. Her hull was fashioned out of the huge timbers of iron root trees that dotted the mountains of the Twilight Peaks. The wood was the strongest known in the region, and unlike vessels made of other woods, such as those made by lowland name-givers, she was strong and could withstand a beating in battle. This made no difference to me on that day. We were not in battle and her well worn deck boards were difficult for me to walk on, as I had not earned my sky legs yet.
Vargas, shrugged. " Nothing. No sign." He grunted, still staring out at the mountain in the distance below.

Elgorn, never pulling his eyes off the blinding white snow, smiled as he leaned closer to me, as though about to tell me a secret.
" Do you see them?" He said quietly. He was always soft spoken. “There.” He lifted a finger and pointed into the vastness of the peaks ahead.

Vargas and I both leaned forward as we peered into the mass of white.

“Come now my newot brother, they are there.” The smile in Elgorn’s voice was unmistable.

I looked and saw nothing. I shook my head, frustrated.

Then Vargas laughed.
“Hah! You were right again brother Elgorn! I see them. Well done.”

He slapped Elgorn on the shoulder, and cuffed me on my ice cold helmet, then wheeled around to bark new orders at the crew.

We had our target.

I knew that his swat at my headgear was meant to calm me but it only infuriated me more. I was big for a human, tall and well built. I had been trained for war and leadership at a young age and had lived as the son of an Ealdorman. Now, among the trolls of the Stoneclaw moot I was a runt human, who could sort of fight but who had no other useful skills, and I felt like a bumbling burden to the clan. My inability to spot the quarry that my two brothers had seen made me feel even more useless. My pride was hurting.

I pulled my helmet off and propped it up on my head so I could see better. The cold steel of the rim chilled my scalp through my hair as a wave of cold wind washed over my head and the warmth of the helmet liner left me.

We were looking for a pack of Crest Wolves. I had been invited to hunt with Elgorn and the other beast riders after it was discovered that I could ride. Though ride I could, I was humbled by that group. I could keep myself on a horse, even fight from atop one, but these name-givers could perform amazing acts and feats of acrobatics on their mounts that left me astonished. And there we were, having just discovered a pack of the huge beasts which was right in front of us somewhere and yet, try as I might, I could not see them.

“Do you see them little brother?” Elgorn asked again. He pointed once again to the peaks and extended his arm slowly toward a rock outcropping dotted with a few pines.

“No.” I said flatly. Frustration was welling up in me. I had been looking forward to this hunt since the night before in the great hall when I was told I would be going with the moot’s rangers. I had even dreamed of catching one of my own. But here I stood, feeling like I was failing my first test.

My attitude did not deter Elgorn in the slightest. “They are there. Do you see the mule deer herd below the trees?”

I nodded. A herd of the deer were grazing at the base of a sheer drop of rocky cliff just past the trees and rocks where Elgorn was pointing. Barely appearing as more than dots in the rocky terrain from this distance.

“They are low the ground because they are watching their prey. They cast no shadow.” He continued. “See their form in color, but do not look for their outline.”

Zartan nodded to me respectfully. I nodded back. Zartan had shown me respect since the day I arrived and had always been friendly toward me, and as a result I liked him. He was short for a mountain troll, about my height, which is to say he was taller than most humans. He had a powerful, blocky build and carried a two handed war hammer that he used like a walking stick. He could have been a good warrior, but instead had chosen the path of a wizard. He looked at Elgorn and his deep voice asked; “So we have our quarry then?”

Elgorn I noticed immediately lost his friendly demeanor. His words became flat, and without emotion.
“Yes Zartan, there is a pack down there by those trees. We’ll need to circle around behind those trees and make our way to them on foot. It will take some time, but we are fortunate. Unless they attack the deer in broad daylight we should get to them by mid afternoon.”

Vargas then asked; “Should we go up above beyond those trees and set you down there?”
Elgorn pondered this, and replied; “No, we’ll need to circle around. We might spook them there.”

Vargas nodded. "Good hunting then.

He and Zartan then left us on the bow. We stood there for a few minutes, staring at the barely perceptible wolves on the white peak. Eventually I broke the silence.

“Do you dislike Zartan, brother?”

Elgorn looked at me, pondered my question for a moment, then shook his head. “No, I do not dislike Zartan. Vargas likes him and trusts him, and he is the sorcerer of this ship. He deserves my respect.”
I thought about that for a moment. I was unsatisfied with that answer. “Do you distrust him?”

Elgorn frowned at that. "Zartan has never done anything to earn the distrust of anyone in the moot. He has always been a loyal clansman. "

I frowned. “You did not answer my question brother.”

Elgorn sighed then, as though he were reluctant to speak. Then he did, muttering words I have not forgotten.
“Zartan is ambitious, he always has been, ever since we were children. He craves power. It is his desire for power that I do not trust. I always have been wary of ambitious name-givers, as I worry their lust for power could cause them to do things that I would not.”

He then spit over the rail. "The way I act toward Zartan is a flaw of who I am, it has nothing to do with him. "

I nodded, understanding, or thinking I did. I looked back to the mountain as the ship began to take a slow turn to the West.
That was two years before the day I stood once again beside Zartan on the cold planks that made up the deck of Wind Viper. Elgorn and Vargas were both dead, victims of Zartan’s treachery. His arms were bound, with two troll guards, both his former shipmates, standing beside him. I had spoken to them both at length, each were tormented by the loss of Vargas, their captain. I made sure each of them were willing to execute Rorik’s orders, taking Zartans eyes, but I made sure that vengeance was not part of their motives. No, each troll only wished to see Zartan do no more harm, and now that Rorik made it clear that Zartan would live, taking his vision would be critical to that.

Knut, a crystal raider and first mate of the Wind Viper, would do the duty. He was to remove both of Zartan’s eyes completely. A healer would then patch him up before he was left at the Kava Moot.

I glanced at Zartan, who stood stoically between his two guards. I had allowed him to have his blindfold removed for a short time so he could see the sky one last time. He stared into the blue without emotion. I wondered if he felt regret for what he did.

As if sensing my thoughts, he muttered. “You should know I did not want anyone hurt.”

I shook my head in disbelief. “How did you think allying yourself with a horror would result in anything else?”

I kept the anger from welling up inside of me. I would be the rock that the rest of the crew would look to, and I knew any anger I showed would amplify what they already felt. We would deal with this traitor with logic and without petty revenge in our hearts. Such is the way of my forefathers and of Rashomon.

Zartan never took his eyes off the sky. As if each moment of sight was too previous to lose looking at me. His voice was the sane deep baritone I remembered but somehow strained and more distant now.

“It was Elgorn who led me to the caves. He had found the crystals and felt the dark presence there. He wanted to know what I thought. We we got to the caves, he became marked and when I tried to help him, the horror crushed his mind, as you saw in the caves yourself. The horror then attacked me and by the time my will was broken, Elgorn was already dead.”
I knew what he had meant about having the mind crushed. I had felt that awful power in spades in the ruins of Paralinth.
He continued, still without a trace of emotion. “I saw how easily the horror had bested Elgorn, and I believed there no hope of the Stoneclaws destroying such a creature. There were too many crystals, and though I was wrong, I did not think they could be so easily destroyed by crude weapons like swords, axes and spears.”

It was then he gave me the quickest of glances, knowing his words about the tools of our trade were insulting to warriors and raiders like myself and most of the crew who took pride in the mastery of such weapons. I did not react, he was partially right, the weapons were crude, but they were still just as effective as any spells or sorcery he could muster. Zartan underestimated their effectiveness, and I remember tucking away that but of knowledge into the back my mind then.

He continued after turning has gaze back to the distant horizon. “The horror then spoke to me in my mind, promising me great power and an honored places at its side if I would help it. Either than or I could become like Elgorn, whose body the creature was molding before my eyes into some sort of twisted construct. I loved the Reach, but it seemed doomed, and I thought perhaps by helping the horror I could spare parts of the clan the worst that the horror would bring. I knew many would die, the leaders and the righteous first of course. Tago, Rorik… Vargas, but I did not think that could be helped. If only I had realized how easily the horror could be dispatched!”

A slight amount of emotion slipped out of his voice then. He meant what he said, I could tell.

He continued. “The horror asked me to get Vargas to come to the caves. I knew what it planned, but I did it because I thought the only choice would be to work with the horror, for the sake of all at The Reach. So I did, and when Vargas saw the trap he fought us both and it was then that the horror gave me the first taste of the power it promised me!”
He tore his eyes from the sky, and the look on his face was passionate, almost pleading with desire for me to understand.
“The power was more than even I could have ever imagined! My karma was unstoppable. Your brother, the great crystal raider that he was, died almost instantly! You would not believe the power, it was extraordinary.”

There was a hint of pride in his voice at that.

“After Vargas and Elgorn were dead, the horror began fusing their bodies together to make a construct unlike any I had ever heard of. So powerful. It tasked me with collecting the leaders and untenable members of the clan. I did so, one at a time. But I insisted that the children, women and elderly were to be spared. The horror agreed. So you see, I did only what I thought I had to do.”

He was unapologetic in his demeanor, only seeking for me to understand. And I did, only all too well.

“No.”

I did not yell but spoke with such calm authority that it caused Zartan to recoil. The guards behind him

“You did what you thought would benefit you, what would spare you. Your concern was not for the moot, your race or your clan, or even your family. Do not pretend that you would risk willingly letting them come under the influence of a horror for their own good. You are too smart to believe that. You displayed a complete lack of honor, and that is why you are now kava. The others of the moot would have chosen death over your actions. You deserve worse than this fate. If I were Rorik, I would have killed you at The Reach. But Rorik in his wisdom has given you a second chance, one which I do not think you deserve. Now you must choose how to use it. Will you still seek blind power or vengeance? Or will you choose to do something good with the remainder of your days? Only you can decide. I truly hope that you choose to atone and make amends for your failings, but know that among the Stoneclaws your name will forever be associated with treachery. Should you choose the wrong path, and should I see you again after this day, I will kill you… with my crude sword.”
Zartan, looked at me expressionlessly.

“Do you understand me?” I asked, my voice calm but icy.

He nodded, and spoke quietly. “I do.”

“Good.” I spoke without anger, with only calm, cool authority. “We are but a few minutes from the edge of the kava moot. When we arrive, per Rorik’s command Knut here will remove your eyes. After that, you will be turned over the kava moot, and may the sane passions guide the remainder of your life.”

I turned on him then, and left him on the rail. We spoke not again. We dropped him off at the kava moot, without his eyes. Knut put him on the path, and handed him a walking stick. As we left I watched him making his way down the trail toward the hovels of the kava moot.

After leaving the Thorin and his people to discuss the offer made by the trolls, Vridich, Dremnin , and myself took The Dashing stag on a bit of a treasure hunt. Dremnin had found a crystal mine marked on one of the prescourge maps he had found at Parlainth. It was in an uninhabited part of the mountain, and we found out why when we went to look for it. It took all of Dremnin’s skill to navigate the ship in the narrow passes. The high winds and blowing snow made the trip all the more difficult.
<—>
We got as close as we could. We parked the ship between four giant pines and lashed the ship in tight. Dremnin and I had magic cloaks that would protect us from the cold so we volunteered to go look. When I dropped in to the snow from the ship I found it to be tail deep.
Dremnin and I split up when we got to the area we need to search. We trudge around in the snow digging in places where we thought it could be under the snow. After 3 hours Dremnin found the entrance. We went back to the ship to get Vridich.

When we all got back to the entrance of the mine we found tracks leading in to the freshly dug hole. Dremnin looked them over and told us that a group of the flying apes, Ice Flyers, had entered the mine while we were gone. Dremnin lead the way in to the cave. He disappeared in to the shadows as he entered the cave. I pulled out my light quartz and followed with Vridich right next to me. The first tunnel looked like it could have been any cave but when I turned the first corner in to the main cavern I was greeted by a vast number of crystals twinkling in the light from my glowing light quartz crystal.

I could see that there was only one cat walk like path. We followed the path through the large room towards an opening on the right. As we got close to the opening four Ice Flyers rose up out of a crevice on the far left side of the room. One was barking and pounding on his chest challenging me. The other three charged. I moved out to the edge of the ledge to head them off. Before I could get there Dremin buried an arrow in the left side of the lead ape’s chest. All that was sticking out the front of the ape was the feathered end. The tip of the arrow must have passed out of the ape’s back and in to its wing. The wing stopped flapping and the ape tumbled out of the air down in to the crevice.
As I moved to cut off the next two, I saw they intended to fly over the top of me. I used the new ability I had gained from my armor. A dazzling burst of light patterns came from the crystal rings around my chest. The two apes covered their eyes and hovered right over the top of me. I swung the hammer. The head slipped under the raised arms of the ape on my left. There was a crunching sound as the hammer shattered the heavy ribs of the ape. His breath was pushed out in a rush that sounded like pain. The ape fell, following his friend in to the black of the crevasse.

A magical bolt flashed past me as Vridich made an attack on the ape screaming and howling. The ape became suddenly quiet. He turned slightly, trying to take a step. It was the third to fall in to the dark.
The fourth and last Ice Flyer charged past me and Dremnin. Then he whirled around and used a spell like ability to encase Dremnin in bands of ice. I ran chasing down the ape and swung the hammer. I caught the Ice Flyer in the shoulder. The blow knocked it in to the stone wall behind it and it fell into a pool of water next to the path. In my rush to defend Dremnin I missed that another flyer had come up this tunnel that had been behind Dremnin. It cast the same ability and now I was secured in bands of ice. It followed up its advantage and hit me with a claw. I would have toppled over if it was not for using my tail like a tripod.

I was stuck in the bonds and my anger was rising. I was shouting at the ape. It raised both arms. It was going to smash me with a powerful double handed over head blow. As it started to bring its arms down on me his head exploded. Vridich had cast a fatal astral spear at the distracted ape. The last ape howled in fear and flew down the tunnel doing all it could to get away from us.

When all of The Unchained was freed from the icy bonds they gave chase after the Ice Flyers. I led the group through the tunnel, moving fast. I came to an opening on the left side of the tunnel. I ran through the door and came to a quick stop. I was on a small ledge just a few feet from the dead Ice Flyer that had been howling challenging me earlier. The tunnel had looped around to the other side of the original room. The Ice Flyer had flown across the room to exit the mine. We had lost it.

Feeling safe after chasing off the Ice Flyer the three of us started to look around. We found what looked like a living quarters for Windlings. There were small sleeping cells, some of them were several feet off of the ground. There were also large common areas that looked like meeting rooms and dining areas.

Dremin found a set of double doors. They were great doors for windlings, but just tall enough for us to walk through. It was a great meeting room made out of crystal. The room was shaped in a dome. There were benches all around the room also made of crystal. They were not just on the floor but hanging from the ceiling so that the windlings could fly up to them.

The three of us had entered and were marveling at the room. The whole room sparkled from our lights. Dremnin found a blue crystal lying on a bench near the center of the room. It was almost the size of my arm and must have weighed twenty pounds. Vridich and Dremnin looked at it in astral space and found that it was magical. We slipped the crystal in to Dremnin’s back pack with hopes of finding out later what it was.

We left the room and around to the left of the doors I found a tunnel that lead down at a sharp angle. It was the first we found that changed elevation. I went down first, and Vridich followed. We made it to the bottom and I started to move forward. Vridich told me that I had better stop. I asked why as my light quartz had a small range the elf could see further in to the darkness. When Dremnin stepped out of the tunnel with his lantern I could see why.

We were on a small platform. There was a small gap to another ledge. Two trolls stood on that ledge. These were not trolls as I knew them. They look like they had been forgotten by civilization, as if they had gone native. One of them shouted at us and made a breaking motion with its hands. That was all I needed to know. I shoot across the opening walking on the air with my gliding stride. I stopped right in between the trolls. I smashed the hammer in to the stone below my feet. There was a resounding BOOM and the floor shook. Both trolls fell flat on their back.

The troll on my left was the first to start getting up. I smashed the tail mace in to the side of its lead knee. The troll screamed in pain and fell again. The other troll made it to his feet. His lunge at me was cut short as Dremnin’s arrow slammed in to his thigh. I could hear the sound of the large bone breaking. The troll started to fall away from me and then was rocked back in to my direction. Vridich had fired his spell with great effect. I caught the troll on the way down with a shot from the big hammer to the side of its head. The troll landed on the floor his head was facing his own back.

The second troll was now standing behind me. He roared in rage and moved to attack. I spun around and caught the wild troll under the chin with the end of the hammer, snapping its head back Dremnin’s arrow appeared in its neck. The troll made a gurgling sound as it grabbed at the arrow. Vridich finished the troll with spell that slammed it against the wall and it slid slowly to the floor.

The three of us search for several hours. There were all forms of true elements to be found in this mine. I found some elemental earth, and a kernel of elemental fire in a windling oven. Dremnin and Vridich found elemental water and true crystal. The three of us had become separated in the searching. Okay I got separated. My curiosity had gotten the better of me. I had gotten board waiting for the other two to harvest the elemental water they found in a small pool.

I wandered around in the tunnels for a short time. Rounding a corner I could see that something was glowing further down the tunnel. It was also warmer in here than the last passage. I shouted back down the tunnel for the others to come check it out. I walked down the tunnel the temperature kept raising. I entered a small room to and found out why. There was an open pool of lava about 10 feet across.

I heard Vridich and Dremnin enter the tunnel. I yelled at them to check it out the lava. The center of the lava started to bubble rapidly. A stream of lava shot out of the pool at me. I ducked and spun to my left. The stream hit the wall behind me and melted a hole in the rock. I looked back to the pool and watched as a giant humanoid for rose out of the lava. It stood almost 4 feet taller than myself and broad like an ork. I fell back to the opening to the tunnel. I had to hold it here. I could not let it out in to tunnel or we could lose control of it.

I took a defensive stance a waited for it to advance. As it came closer the heat was intense. As it took the final step I need to put it in range I swung the hammer. I hit it in the arm. It was like striking a stone statue, but the monster reacted. That gave me hope. If I could hurt it we could kill it. The first punch it threw was slow and easy to read. I leaned out of the way, the punch missed me but the heat made my eyes water and my nostrils close.

I watched as Dremnin’s arrow went past me and burst in to flames as it got close to the lava monster. Nothing but ashes made it through the heat to dust on to the monsters chest. Vridich cast a spell that really pissed off the burning giant. I could see that the monster wanted past me to get to Vridich. He roared and punched at me again. I got over confidant and easily dodged the punch. It was the second punch that I was not watching for that caught me in the chest. The strength of the punch was not as bad as I would have expected it was the burning that was bad. My pants and shirt burst in to flames and instantly burnt off me.

Dremnin appeared next to me with is shield out in front of him. I swung back with a pair of strikes from the hammer one down low on the leg the other was square in the chest. That blow caused him to rock back on his heals but he kept his feet. I noticed that when I pulled the hammer back the head was glowing red. I was worried how long we could keep the assault up.

Dremnin lashed out with his axe. Vridich kept firing spells. Each one caused the monster great pain. Vridich and I landed spell and hammer at the same time. The combo was more than it could take. The fire burned out of the monster as it fell over backwards and it broke into pieces as it hit the floor.

Vridich knew that the blood of the Magma Beast was a valuable resource. So I ran back to the windling kitchen and collected large pots and pans so that we could collect as much as we could. Vridich took one of the elemental water vials they had collected. He tossed the glass vial in to the magma beasts den, the pool of lava. Nothing happened. There were great gouts of steam and spray. We backed out of the room and watched the show. It lasted a few moments and then was over. The room and the tunnel started to cool. We went in to find that the pool was a mass of loose lava rock. We could see diamonds and gems in the rock and moved around to start collection our treasure.

The sun was coming up over the horizon. Gold and reds played across the clouds. This was the first time I would be taking the Dashing Stag out after becoming an Air Sailor. Stilicho was training, so I was in charge. It felt very empowering. Vridich, Dremnin, Suulin, and Urgral had agreed to go with me to talk to Thorin in the kaer of Daren Kuyu.

Dremnin got us to the mountain top about an hour sooner than we had expected. I directed the crew to dock the ship against the cliff side. The present members of The Unchained as well as Fafnir disembarked and headed for the entrance. It was buried under eight feet of snow. I looked to Vridich, “You are an elementalist now Vridich?”

Vridich nodded,”I have started my studies with Grimlock.”

“Good,” I said, “So you can melt the snow and we will not have to dig.”

Vridich suddenly had a concerned look on his face. He pulled out a large book and started going through it. “I am sorry I cannot.”

So we started digging.

When I got the door cleared I pulled out the disk that Thorin had given me to signal to have the door opened. I placed it in its spot in the door and concentrated on the disk. I felt a deep “THOOM”, like a gong pass through astral space. Soon after a small door inside the great door opened and allowed us entry.

The group of us headed down the long set of stairs. We could hear the ring of metal being shaped on a forge. As we got to the bottom of the stairs we were met by Thorin and four others armed and armored for combat. I laughed and said, “Do you mean us a fight friend? It has been a couple of weeks sense I have had a good fight.”

Thorin Smiled, “You can’t be too careful.” Then the tall dwarf laughed and shook my hand strongly. Looking behind me Thorin went on, “Your group looks a little small.” I explained that the rest of the group was back at The Reach training.

Thorin wished to show us around so that we could see how they had progressed. He introduced us to a self-initiated beast master. He was a boy of fourteen years. He stood guard over a flock of sheep. The old ram of the flock stood by his side watching us strangers carefully. We saw that the aqua ducts had been repaired. The hole that the horror had made in the floor had been filled with rubble and banded over with heavy iron bands. A section of the old animal market had been cleared and turned into a great forge.

Thorin took us in to his hall and provided us with eat and drink. Thorin’s wife was with child. This was a significant event as they group had not been able to conceive children in the pocket realm of the horror. We talked about all the progress that had been made and how the name givers their group for the most part was happy. At that point Thorin turned the conversation towards us.

We told him that we had prospered in the world outside. We owned an air ship. Most of us were business owners. That the group of slaves that had helped him escape the horror had formed a patteren bonded group known as The Unchained. Thorin pointed to the pin on my shirt,”I know that symbol. You are a thane of Throal?” I told him that I was and all of us had a direct relationship with the young king.

“So, is the world ready for us to come out?” Thorin asked.

“Funny you should ask me that.” I said. “The village that the rest of The Unchained was at was a troll village called The Reach. The leader, Rorik has sent me to offer you land to settle on.”

Thorin looked shocked. “You are friends with mountain trolls? I will not be a slave to a troll or any one!”

“When Rorik brought this idea to me that was the first thing that I told him. I would not bring you in to the outside world to become slaves. I trust Rorik, he calls me brother and I call him brother.”

Thorin looked confused. “You are a thane of Throal and a brother to a troll cheiftan?”
“I know it is a little strange. My goal right now is to bring a peace and trade agreement between the two. It may be the first of its kind.” I said.

Thorin leaned back in his chair and stroked his beard. He was quiet for a long moment. His wife reached out and touched his shoulder. Thorin snapped back to the present, “I want to meet this chieftain for myself.”

“I told him that.” I said

“Right then, you can head back to your ship and we will be out in a short while.” Thorin declared.

I looked to Thorin’s very pregnant wife. “Do not worry my lady. As a Thane of the dwarven King of Throal I swear to you that I will bring Thorin back to you unharmed.” She smiled and thanked me.

Thorin stood at the bow of the Dashing stag all the way back to The Reach. He marveled at the sight of the outside of the mountains. It was hard to understand never having seen trees, snow, or the open sky.

As we pulled in to The Stag in to the enclosed air dock I could see that Rorik had pulled out all the stops. He was dressed in fine clothes and brightly shining crystal armor. A group of sky raiders were standing in a neat formation behind him. There were two dozen or more villagers present that were waving to greet the ship and crew. To play a little bit of a joke on Rorik I had Vridich do the formal introduction. The big troll chieftain has been uncomfortable around the nethermancer their first meeting. During the fight with the trolls on the top of the mountain Vridich cast a spell on Rorik that made him run in fear.

The two leaders went to Roriks hall and talked about the details behind closed doors, just the two of them. After an afternoon of waiting the pair came out both smiling. No answer had been reached. Thorin wanted to talk to his people first.

There was a great feast that night. Thorin ate from many plates. He tried everything that got with in arms reach. The dwarf drank heavily as well, toasting many times with Rorik. Thorin became very drunk very early. We should have foreseen this problem. He had only known of of strong drink for three months. Before some kind of problem could arise we took Thorin to his that Rorik had provided. I stood watch outside the Thorins door that night.
The next morning Thorin thanked Rorik for his hospitality. We were taking him back to the mountain. We all loaded back on to the stag and headed out. When we dropped him off he told me that if I were to bond to the patteren item he had given me one more time I would be able to pass messaged to him through it. He said that I should contact him in a few days to find out his answer.

We watched him and his men walk to the entrance. Dremnin and I smiled. Dremnin, Vridich and I had talked about trying to find an old mine on the trip back to The Reach. A little adventure on the way back, it had been two weeks sense anything had happened and we were getting the itch.

As their search of the lost mine continued, Skram came across what appeared to be a small tunnel that sloped sharply downwards. Having just passed through a chamber filled with exquisite blue crystals, he immediately slithered down the tight passage he’d discovered and emerged in a wider area of another level. Vridich and Dremnin soon followed him down the passage and the light of Dremnin’s lantern showed another wide open area split by a deep crevice. On the other side of the crevice were two, very large gray-skinned humanoid creatures with clubs. They had seen the Unchained and let out a roar. They looked ready to move in to attack, but Skram moved more quickly using the Air Dance talent again for the third time today, and immediately used the Hammer of Upandaal to strike the ground and knock both creatures off their feet. The battle with these degenerate Cave Trolls was over quickly, having been beaten and bested in two quick successive series of attacks by the Unchained. A search of their lair yielded some more simple Windling items, and the heroes moved out to explore this new level.

Skram was a blur of exploration, moving quickly around the maze of passages, looking into cul de sacs and rooms, down passages and checking interesting spots on the mine walls. He located a patch of Elemental Earth and scooped up a sack full, while Dremnin discovered a patch of True Crystals on a section of wall. Vridich and Dremnin went about their searches more slowly paced and thorough, stopping to explore among other things a pool of beautiful, clear water that investigation proved contained cornels of Elemental Water! Having successfully bottled some of it to take back to the ship, they looked around and found they had lost track of Skram. They immediately hurried off to locate him, as no one should ever explore a dangerous site on their own, due to unknown dangers that could lurk around every corner. Dremnin used his Tracking skills to easily identify and follow Skram’s path through this level, where the inquisitive T’Skrang has just located an oven containing a cornel of Elemental Fire as a heating source. The remnants of the Windling miners were everywhere, and the trio of explorers recovered them to sell at a later time.

As they closed in on Skram’s location, Vridich and Dremnin saw some huge mushrooms which were tall enough to stand under. Off in the distance, they saw a bright light coming from another chamber where Skram’s tracks clearly led. Suddenly they heard a loud, beastly roar of anger and heard Skram issue a challenge. As the pair rounded the corner, there stood Skram with hammer poised to fight a huge humanoid figure that was rising out of a pit of lava. Dremnin readied his warbow and Vridich took position to hurl another Astral Spear at this new threat. Vridich used his knowledge skills to try and identify the creature prior to taking action, as it was like nothing the Unchained had ever seen before. It turned out to be a Magma Beast!

Before it cleared the pool of lava, the Magma Beast caused a spout of lava to spurt up and tried to hit Skram with it. By the luck of the Passions, he evaded the firey blast of lava as it impacted the wall of the chamber, and he swung the great hammer in to strike a solid blow on the creature. As he pulled the hammer back after landing the blow, the end of his great hammer had turned red from the heat of the impact. The creature tried repeatedly to claw and bite Skram, but he was just too quick for it. Dremnin used his great warbow to shoot an arrow into it, and would have done it great harm, but instead of impacting the creature in a vital spot the arrow simply vaporized just before impact. Stunned by this turn of events, the Scout swallowed a Booster Potion to heal his battle damage, then pulled his mareka and charged in to stand beside Skram, trying to turn its attention from Skram and thus soak up some of the beast’s blows. Vridich, however, landed yet another Astral Spear into it, causing it great pain and damage. Thus with well-placed blows from magic and the great hammer, the battle was eventually won.

With the Magma Beast vanquished, Vridich used a vial of Elemental Water to cool off the creature’s lair, allowing the Nethermancer to harvest several cornels of Elemental Fire from the cooling lava pool. In the meantime, Dremnin and Skram collected the blood of the Magma Beast for use in elemental magics, using pots and pans from the kitchen and eventually collecting a few gallons of this rare and pricey substance. Dremnin also took the creature’s claws, teeth and horns as trophies. Loaded with booty and a fine tale for the long house, as well as having rediscovered an invaluable source of crystal and elemental substances, the tired group marked the location of the mine, covered it up again, then headed back to the Reach.

It was a most memorable chain of events for some members of the Unchained. During a lull in training at the Reach, Skram, Vridich and Dremnin decided to take the Dashing Stag and go on a search for a lost crystal mine that Dremnin had read about while studying the Geography of Barsaive. It had been while he was perusing the ancient maps taken from the ruins of Parlainth that Dremnin discovered a tiny, hand written notation showing the location of a crystal mine in the Twilight Peaks. The trolls of the Reach were masters in working crystal, so the idea of a lost mine struck Dremnin as a way to add much to the income stream of the Unchained, and provide some adventure as well. The small group was not to be disappointed.

The three adventurers set forth on a clear day, with high hopes to find what had been lost since before the Scourge swept the face of Barsaive. With unerring accuracy and a steady hand on the ship’s wheel, as though guided by the Passions themselves, Dremnin fought the treacherous wind currents and violent storms of the mountains to arrive at a site he felt must be close to the noted location of the lost mine. As acting Captain, Skram saw to it that the ship was firmly anchored between some ancient pines, while Dremnin began to conduct an analysis of the overall area. When joined by Skram, the two friends managed to narrow down the search area to one fifth the original size, and then set about their search for the entrance. The area was covered in snow and ice so deep that in some cases, only the very tops of some of the ancient pines showed themselves. With bitter cold winds whipping around them, and wearing their common magic cloaks to help protect them against the elements, the two set out to conduct a pattern search of a grid network Dremnin had laid out.

For over three hours the pair of seekers checked areas of the pattern without success. They went back to the ship where Vridich waited, handing Dremnin and Skram each a steaming mug of hot cocoa and allowing them to warm themselves by the galley stove. As they thawed themselves, they spoke of the pattern search they had made so far, and planned their next round of attempts with the hope of success driving them onwards.

With daylight fading quickly, Dremnin finally hit pay dirt. He found the edge of a rocky outcropping that made the Scout’s senses feel the need to dig down into the snow and ice at a particular place. With renewed energy he dug quickly, like a man possessed, as the snow and ice piled up behind him. Skram came over and watched Dremnin dig for a moment, then when he realized that this was not just the regular searching, he jumped in began helping the scout push the excavation materials to the side as Dremnin dug deeper. With a whoop Dremnin announced he was through and into the beginning of a cave. He stepped down into the dark interior and pulled out his light crystal, which illuminated a small entranceway. The light gleamed and reflected off of what appeared to be crystals in the walls, and Dremnin knew that they had succeeded! Coming up to look out the hole they had dug, he yelled up at Skram, “Let’s go back to the ship and get Vridich so that we can explore this cavern.” The wide grin on Dremnin’s face was returned 10 fold by the T’Skrang Tail Dancer’s toothy smile as Skram leaned down and helped his friend back up out of the earth. The scout marked the spot with rocks so as to be able to find it easily again.

The pair then wasted no time getting back to the ship and informed Vridich, the Unchained’s elven Nethermancer, of what they had found. “I looked in Astral Sight, Vridich, but saw no evidence of Horror taint inside the cavern, but I wanted you to make sure before we all go traipsing inside”, the young human said to the elf. Quaffing down some more hot cocoa, Skram and Dremnin eagerly gathered their adventuring gear, including ropes and climbing equipment, knowing that spelunking had its own special needs in order to be a successful experience. As they stood on the deck, Dremnin’s sharp eyes spied a very unusual sight high above them in the cold, clear air of the highest Peaks. He’d spotted what looked like a giant dragon fly, but it had to be 80 feet long! Its wings shimmered like jewels in the fading light of day as it headed off to the south. He pointed it out to his companions, and Vridich announced it to be a creature called a Prisma. By the Passions, a sign of good fortune must surely mean their endeavor was blessed. With excited talk of what might lie beneath the mountain, the trio set out to explore the site that had supposedly been lost to Name Givers since before the time of the Scourge.

When they arrived at the entrance to the mine, they discovered somber evidence that told them that something had found Dremnin’s rock markers, and had entered the mine in the interim since they had left the entrance not long before. After looking at the evidence at the mine’s entrance, Dremnin muttered that a group of about eight Ice Flyers had landed and gone inside. With his light handy, the Scout slipped down inside the mine’s entrance and then performed the talent knack known as Shadow Hide, which would allow him to move slowly in the darkened interior of the mine without being seen by the flying baboon-like creatures.

Skram was soon moving cautiously up behind the Scout, with the T’Skrang carrying their lantern, and Vridich bringing up the rear. Using another Scout talent knack called Astral Tracking, Dremnin could clearly see the footprints and evidence of the passing group of Ice Flyers as they moved into the mine. As Skram left the narrow entranceway, he came into a vast chamber where the light showed paths of stone winding among crevices that dropped off into nothingness. They were now apparently in the main chamber of the mine, where the rays of their light caused reflections to shimmer off of crystals embedded in the rock all around them as far as the light travelled. Here indeed was the lost mine!

Dremnin, while following the tracks of Ice Flyers on foot, had turned to the right along one path ahead of Skram, where he heard the distant hooting sounds made by at least one of the Ice Flyers. He motioned to Skram that he had heard something, but it was at that moment that four Ice Flyers rose up from the crevice to Skram’s left and began barking their loud challenges at the Tail Dancer. As Skram moved to engage the incoming Ice Flyers with the Hammer of Upandaal, Dremnin loosed a four foot shaft from his ancient war bow Ozidani Carranasto. The shaft hit the Ice Flyer true, causing the flying simian to screech in pain and to drop helplessly crippled into the crevice below him. His howls of pain and the sounds of breaking crystal shards followed him down into the inky blackness below. For his part, Skram used one of his abilities to suddenly shine in the darkness with a sparkling, blinding brilliance which halted the Ice Flyer’s flying charge, and while they paused in blinded confusion, he smashed one with his great hammer and sent the now crippled ape falling after his partner into the depths.

The elven Nethermancer, Vridich, was not to be outdone by his compatriots, and he carefully targeted a third Ice Flyer with an Astral Spear spell and dropped the creature dead in his tracks, though this ape was flying over the stone path when he died, so he flopped onto the stone path with a very satisfying thump. A satisfied smile showed on the elf’s face, and he turned to see what else was happening with Skram and Dremnin.

Hearing movement behind him, the Scout was about to turn and face the path behind him when an Ice Flyer emerged and used one of its spell abilities on Dremnin to cause him to be encased in icy bonds that prevented any physical actions. His attempt to use the talent Steel Thought and avoid the ape’s spell ability failed, and this both surprised and frustrated the young human, as fetters of any kind were a reminder of his past as a slave. But the bonds held him fast as yet another Ice Flyer emerged from that dark pathway, and the entangled Scout now received a vicious bite from his enemy. Seeing his friend’s predicament, Skram moved quickly to try and help cover Dremnin, and used his great hammer to smash a mighty blow into one of the attacking Ice Flyers, knocking him out of the air and into a small pool of water. However, the second Ice Flyer used the same ability on Skram that had worked on Dremnin, and both Name Givers now found themselves encased in icy bonds. Only using their individual strength would help them break free.

In the meantime, Vridich had moved up to assist Skram and was set upon from behind by the surviving Ice Flyer from the four that had originally attacked the Skram. Once again an Astral Spear spell lashed out and impaled the Ice Flyer, knocking him to the ground with a thud and a howl of terrible pain. With the battle going against them, and with Dremnin now managing to get free of his icy bonds at last, the remaining Ice Flyers flew away from the Unchained into the darkness. As the trio of heroes tried to follow them through the mine’s pathways, the Ice Flyers used their greater mobility to flee the scene and leave the Unchained in sole possession of the mine. The battle for the mine was over.

Seeing that they were all pretty much intact and none the worse for wear, they bandaged Dremnin’s bite wound and began to explore the mine. The pathways led them in twisting, turning directions, up and down, sometimes passing over or under each other, past huge outcroppings of beautiful seams of crystal, running like rivers of sparkling glass inside the rock. They also found evidence of the original miners, with several chambers that had once served as living questers, meeting rooms, dining halls, and more. Of great interest to the Unchained were the artifacts they found, cups and plates, and other simple creations which showed that the miners were in fact Windlings! Then in one of the meeting rooms Dremnin found an exquisite blue crystal approximately two feet in length and weighing at least 20 pounds. This crystal was some sort of magical artifact, but at the time they had no idea what it was, so they saved it for later research. Their dwarven Travelled Scholar, Fafnir, would later declare it to be a Dragon Memory Crystal, a mighty prize indeed.

I had decided. I was going to train as an Air Sailor. The only one I knew of was Hakka, and I really did not want to ask him. I had been hard on him. I had thought that he was sloppy and that he was a security risk. He had also served the Therands as an Air Sailor.
I asked around the village, surely with a village this size there is an air sailor. I was shocked to find out that I was wrong. I was going to have to swallow my pride. I was going to have to ask Hakka to train me.

After my sun dance on the rock I knew that I was going to have to make amends with Rorik. I had pushed the boundary of offending his trollish honor. Rorik had shown great restraint. The loss of my hatchlings had made me off balanced and hostile to most everyone. Rorik had come to me and tried to extend a hand of friendship to me. He had even made a great gesture and found Fa’ala and my son and returned them to the village, for my benefit. I had not thanked him for this gesture.

I walked through the rocky forest of the mountain around the reach. I was headed to the water fall up stream of the lake the village fished. Normally I would have taken time to enjoy the walk but my mind was so busy that I did not notice the natural wonder happening before me. After my talk with Stilicho I knew I needed to find my spiritual and emotional balance and I was going to dance until I found it.

Dusk. I stood on the deck of our ship, The Dashing Stag. The only sounds I could hear was the creak of the ship and occasional rustle of sail as the breeze hit the canvass. The sky was a collage of colors blending with the distant white and gray skyline of the Twilight Peaks in the West. It was an amazing sight to behold, and one which I no longer took for granted. Too many good name-givers I knew well were gone, and they could no longer see these things. I made sure to save a moment to enjoy the beautiful things of the world, for their sake and my own. For at that time in my life, I knew all too well that when death is imminent, such moments seem very precious indeed.